Guys. I love you so much, but I don’t have it in me this week. I do have some treasures, but may I just say how much I love and respect this community? It means the world to me. I’m so grateful. I have learned so much from you. You constantly surprise and delight me. Can’t wait for a vaccine because we’re having Swipe Up Camp one day. It’s happening.
First of all, there is a SELENA SERIES coming to Netflix. I LOVE SELENA so much, and I am very excited about this.
We also got press images from the modern-day Christmas Carol: The Princess Switch. Bad Movie Club GET READY.
I asked my dear friend Morgan of Winsome Paper if she’d make me a personal crest because I’m weird and she did. It’s amazing. I broke it down on the ‘gram today.
I loved this Twitter story (you’ll have to click through to see the whole thing):
Quick reminder that Comfortable Together begins on Monday, October 12th and we’d love to have you join us. The last time I checked, it was over 600 people, which I am just in awe over. Lil Swipes get the biggest discount anywhere with code LILSWIPES, and please remember if it’s not in the budget for you, we have free licenses to share from really generous folks. Just reply to this email and we’ll get you sorted.
I hope it’s a great weekend. Looking forward to your treasures. ❤️
Again, reading this later rather than sooner. But I love this newsletter so much and after a hard day, finding out that Erin loves Selena (like a true Texan) was just the right dose of happiness that I needed.
I’m always SUPER late to the party here, and feel like if I’m not able to comment first thing on Friday then what’s the point, but oh well I’m here today and that’s how life goes. It’s Thanksgiving here in Canada this weekend so I’ve been looking extra hard for treasures.
🌟 My son found out on Thursday that he was accepted into his first choice of University in the exact program he wanted (secondary education) so that was major cause for celebration! He said he feels like the biggest pressure of his senior year is lifted, so yay to less stress.
🌟 We are spending our fifth Thanksgiving in a row at an adorable cabin in Jasper National Park and being away from our home for the first time in months is giving me life. Trees, mountains, lakes and nature are soothing my weary soul.
🌟 I wrote three(!) midterms this past week and feel pretty happy with my efforts. Hopefully my grades will reflect the hours I’ve spent bleary-eyed in front of my textbooks.
🌟 King’s Cross Pumpkin Spice liquor has definitely upped my PSL game. Cheers!
🌟 Very much looking forward to The Comfortable Words next week. My only faith community for the last couple years has been The Bible Binge (after some serious betrayal at our church) so I’m excited to connect with you on a deeper level.
It took me all day to get to this thread but I'm always glad I did. I have only one treasure because it's just the most precious thing. I'm not brief so bear with your girl.
Yesterday, my sister-in-law Nina told me about how my oldest nephew, Dominic talked to some Mormon missionaries trolling their neighborhood the previous evening.
Now let me stop and tell you about this kid for a second. He's 16 years old going on 17. He's just the most secure person I know. He likes what he likes and he doesn't care what anyone thinks. I've never known a teenager or adult for that matter who is so sure of himself but in the most humble nonchalant way. He has competed in Rubix cube competitions on a National level, I'm talking neighborhood kids used to come to his door to watch him solve a cube in something like 13 seconds. He stopped playing football last year because he just wasn't feeling it plus two-a-days are the worst. His favorite type of music is worship music. He loves puzzling, film production and only knows how to cook one thing, turkey sandwiches. He's taller than I am and has his driver's license. He just started running, like of his own volition, during quarantine. He loves his family so fiercely especially his 5 year old sister.
So back to the Mormons. He was delivering something to a neighbor and on the way back encountered these missionaries who are probably not very much older than he is. They started asking him questions, he answered calmly in his very Dominic kind of way. He talked to them for 45 minutes, on a school night! He said it wasn't aggressive or confrontational. They talked about the Bible a lot, I guess. When Nina, my SIL asked him why he kept talking to them, he said, "Because I care about them."
CUE SOBS
I mean...what? I died, and raised my own little missionary hands to my heart. I'm right now thinking of all the people I know with any kind of evangelistic gifts that I can get this kid to hang out with on the regular.
This week has been a big ole bucket of suck. I’m trying to press through it. It’s not going super well. But if I wallow in it, it’ll swallow me whole. I could use some prayers. Anyway, here’s my treasures from this week:
🙌🏻 My English teacher gave us the best and easiest homework this week. “Listen to Hamilton”. I think it may be my favorite homework assignment ever.
🎉 I tweeted about said homework and got a RT by the official Hamilton Twitter. Pretty darn cool, if I do say so myself.
Late to the party after getting distracted with, ya know, work, but here are my treasures!
- Bri McKoy's #ThisIsWhy video on IG. She is light and love.
- Following vin_ayy on IG. Y'all. He videos himself talking from the perspective of animals. His impersonations are life giving. OHMYGOSH it's so good.
- I've been exclusively dating online for the past year and over the last month I've developed a crush on a "real life" guy who I didn't meet on an app (!!!) and he's coming over tonight for a movie night with some other friends and I'm nauseated with excitement. So yeah. T and Ps.
- Subscribed to the paid version of Sectional Healing from Knox McKoy (or ya boi, however you like it) and am so happy with all the content I get from him now. Such a good, nuanced writer.
I hope you all have fabulous weekends full of good sleep, yummy carbs, and absolutely no douche canoes.
Erin Moon, your translated Latin makes absolute sense to me. Because, that’s my brain at its finest. I ❤️ it so much!
Also, not long after Selena was gone, I worked in southern East Texas at a wilderness camp for emotionally-challenged teen girls, and they were literally *in mourning* for her. Though I really didn’t understand the depth of it, I have always related Selena to those girls at that time in my life. It was a trifecta of emotional resonance: my own depression, their shattered lives, and a spiritual reawakening that led me back to Jesus. For years I watched the Selena movie every time it was on (bc Jon Seda, my beloved, whom I’d already discovered), and her albums (CASSETTE TAPES!) were my soundtrack driving back and forth to Houston from the camp. I haven’t decided if I want to revisit that time in life by watching the new Netflix project, but it certainly brought back memories with the trailer.
My own week has been... different. Y’all, I slept! Every night! At bedtime! 🙌🏻 A couple nights I even drifted off while lying on the couch watching tv! What is happening?!? I’ve got 2 theories on this new occurrence: (a) some of y’all have been praying for me 🥰, and (b) I began reading the “Gospels in 30 days” plan. I’ve been scattershot in devotions for a while, so I took Annie Downs’s suggestion and started the 30-day plan. It’s no coincidence that my inner life flipped back in place after settling in to some focused time with God. It’s been truly GLORIOUS to see daylight again and be productive.
I made one note this week on a Treasure. I’m catching up on Tsh Oxendreider’s podcast, The Good List, and episode 46 includes a fantastic list of creators to explore: https://tshoxenreider.com/46.
Hello, friends! Like most of you, it has been quite a week. I've got to go visit my grandfather tomorrow (he isn't likely to live much longer and my anxiety has been through the roof about visiting) and I know it will be hard but I know I'll be glad I did it in the end. My doctor adjusted my meds and suggested I cut caffeine so I'm currently trying to dig myself out of the deep dark hole every morning. I've always had issues with mornings but it has been especially rough this week. But, there have been a few treasures.
-I found a baby yoda travel mug on clearance and snapped it right up. My half caf coffee is less sad when placed in this vessel. I also made Bri's pumpkin simple syrup to add and it is a genuine delight.
-I decided that one of my new October traditions was going to be our own version of 31 Days of Halloween. We've been making dinner and watching a fall/halloween/spooky vibes movie a few nights a week and it has been such a shot of serotonin. So far we've done: Clue, Dial M for Murder, Halloweentown I & II, The Addams Family, The Addams Family Values, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Practical Magic, and tonight we'll do Rocky Horror.
-Homemade Fried Rice!!! My health has been a real issue lately. I have dealt with chronic health issues since my teen years and mostly had everything under control but this last month I had some new symptoms crop up and my doctor suggested I cut gluten, dairy, and caffeine as much as possible. It has been a struggle to find anything my body would tolerate and that wasn't a chore to make. Homemade fried rice swooped in and saved the day. I'm making batches at the beginning of the week and then eating it for lunches and occasional dinners.
- I got new Halloween potholders fro $1 a piece at WM last week and they make me so happy I've decided to keep them out year round.
-Our new house is almost ready! We had to be out of our old place before our new place was ready so we'll be moving for the second time in two months but it will all be worth it when we're done. It has enough space for me to have an office/reading nook, my partner to have a music room, and we have a huge fenced in back yard so we can FINALLY get a dog. We'll be closer to both our jobs and right across the street from friends/the family I babysit for regularly. It also has a screened in front porch and a huge back porch. Also, there are several old school french style doors that were imported from England in the 30s and I am over the moon.
This week has been hard and things will probably not get better very soon, but it's nice to look for the moments of goodness to balance it out.
Hi! Hello! I'm here! Much later to the party than I would like to be today.
Let's jump right in, shall we? This weeks has honestly been more turd than treasure, but I'm plotting some things to change that. First on the list, my favorite second born's computer decided it no longer wants to charge or turn on at all so we got to ship her 3ish month old laptop back to the maker for warranty repairs. Hooray for warranties I guess, but this means my laptop has been moved to her possession during school hours, thus reducing my ability to do any of the computer things including hanging out with my favorite Friday internet gang before 2pm on most days. Boo! Ex-husband makes a not so surprising reappearance on the TURD list this week because after he finally reached out to the ocular specialist regarding our oldest daughter's diagnosis and care; said specialist felt compelled to call me on Saturday morning outside of office hours to express his concerns with my ex's attitude and his potential detriment to our daughters recovery and progress. Not to mention that he see's him as a likely cause for her anxiety and stress. UGH! I hate, hate, hate feeling like I cannot protect my child from the person who is most detrimental to her well being right now. Add to that weird stomach bug ickyness within our home and general over-it-ness and we're a barrel of laughs.
Treasures this week in no particular order. Goat Cheese Biscuits from Shauna Niequist Bread & Wine - so good! Countdown to Christmas Stitch Along from Hanana Hand Makes has fed my sense of completion and is about as close to meditation as I get. I'm delightfully excited about the sweet little advent calendar that is coming together piece by piece and looking forward to filling the little pockets with the perfect beads/charms for my girls. We finished Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire this week which means tonight we get to watch the movie! That and homemade pizza are the light at the end of the today tunnel. Finally we do not have the girls on Oct. 31, but I'm not letting that stop me from plotting a fun "halloweenie" evening for the 4 of us the weekend before complete with costumes, glow-in the dark candy egg hunt, creepy themed dinner (Thanks Raddish Kids!) Spooky Charcuterie Boards and Hocus Pocus.
Looking forward to Comfortable Together next week.
Excited to finally catch up on everyone's comments and the goings on for the last week.
My treasure is Erin, Jamie, and others sharing their #thisiswhy2020. I'm feeling so encouraged. I've always been more progressive and it has felt lonely sometimes in the Christian faith, although not necessarily in my very blue state. I have been trying to learn more about a global Christian faith - not just an Americanized one - which I fear many, myself included, can fall into.
I LOVED the twitter thread about the trees. My husband has an airplane tracker app and sometimes sits on our deck looking up where the planes are going that pass over head. (we are in a flight path, much to his delight.) I sent him the thread and he was like, "MY PEOPLE!"
My treasure this week is the rescue and grace of Amazon Fresh. I knew my friend’s birthday was this month. I kept telling myself that I need to look up the date. I was totally taken off guard yesterday that it was her birthday already. By the time I realized this, it was too late to have flowers delivered the same day and I was starting to feel desperate. Enter Amazon Fresh. I was able to have multiple flower bunches from Whole Foods delivered by 6pm. She loved it! She has many vases and loves arranging (and is good at it). She ended up with eight vases of flowers to put all around her house. Whew! It was a close one with a happy ending. Bonus: It was a lot less expensive than having a flower arrangement delivered.
I am ready for The Princess Switch. Living with a male spouse, 2 male children, a male rabbit, and a possibly male fish, has me ready for guaranteed me only viewing. Bubble gum viewing works.
Erin, I just have to say, thank you for your gracious responses to people (who don't even follow you) coming at you for your Instagram post about voting this week. If I ever had the bravery to post that I'm voting for Biden for all my conservative friends and family to see (which I wouldn't - type 9 over here who once told her parents she thought Obama was a great president and you would have thought I told them I killed someone), I would 100% turn off comments and DMs. But if I didn't, I don't think I'd be able to respond to the hate/opposition as kindly and succinctly as your simple "thank you for sharing your thoughts and opinions" responses. I probably would be much more passy-agressy, if I responded at all.
I have zero things to share here because this week has just been kind of blah, and I'm just counting down the hours until I can get a long hug tonight after sitting in Friday traffic to see The Boy. I appreciate everyone sharing their treasures to make my way through.
Hello everyone. This is my first proper post with some things that I've loved recently.
Firstly as a former teacher this account has made me cry with laughter (skip to the teacher series ones they're the best ones) https://www.tiktok.com/@kyronhamilton?lang=en he's also on instagram. I don't know if these would only be funny to teachers/students from the UK so that would be interesting to hear.
Good things I've watched recently- rewatching columbo from the start it's so good and easy viewing. I surprised myself with how much I enjoyed the second born royals movie on Disney plus. A nice, switch off watch. If you like 'british' humour or just some silliness then look for clips of would I lie to you. It's a panel show where they have to guess by listening to the other guests stories if they're lying or not and there are some absolute brilliant ones. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1vE8ExuuNZQ
If you can get it then there is a BBC show called Mortimer and Whitehouse go fishing and it's actually little to do with fishing more focused on the lovely male friendship between the two men and very funny too.
I hope this upcoming weekend and week treats you as well as possible and that you are able to find pockets of joy.
Thank you for the reference "Anything for Selenas." Also a huge Selena fan and I feel seen. Put a huge smile on my face in an otherwise challenging week.
I just wanted to do a shout out to Erin Moon, Kendra, Laura and Jamie. Well done all of you; so proud of your words. The use of your platforms in a way that’s important and matters to you made me so full of gratitude.
I’m so sorry for the ugly words, hateful inbox messages and those who felt the need to announce their departure. I’ve been on the receiving end of hateful internet strangers. It still stings because you are human, I just the sting doesn’t last. Truly well done. 🤎🤎🤎🤎
It has been some kind of week over here. Monday morning began with the woman who runs the schedule at my counselor's office getting angry with me for not receiving her text message about my appointment being cancelled. She texted the wrong number. And so it went for the past 4 days.
For the first time in my life, I dropped my phone in the toilet yesterday. My treasure this week is that a bag of rice was all my phone needed, and I got a good laugh about it.
I know I'm not alone in this, but I've started listening to the Harry Potter series and it's been a balm to my heart. I'm in book one, so this hasn't been going on for too long, but it's been exactly what I've needed in the most difficult week. And, to continue the theme of heart-soothing media: Ted Lasso. What a wonderful show. It's just good. That's the only word I can come up with to describe it. I feel so peaceful when watching a show with a main character who is so kind and good. I love it.
So, so excited for Comfortable Together.
I'm running a half marathon tomorrow, so I'll see you all next Friday if I survive ;)
Hey, all—happy Friday. 🙂 This past week wasn’t much to write home about. Not bad, not amazing. But I’ll take middle of the road.
🌳 The tree Twitter thread was amazing. I am mildly obsessed with trees and regularly acknowledge to myself and others how happy they make me feel. I’ve even got a tree Insta account (@woodsofaffirmation) where I post tree pictures and pair them with thoughtful and contemplative quotes. I felt the moment between those two people on an existential level for sure.
👯♀️ Another friend and I have decided to be in each other’s family bubbles going into this Michigan winter, and we hung out last night like normal people. We drank wine. We ate cheese. We talked about all the things. It was a serotonin shot in the brain that I needed.
📚 I’m re-reading Harry Potter and it is such good escapism from...everything.
😕 I am going to be honest with you fam, but I’m super conflicted over voting. I don’t know that I really want to hash it out on here, I just needed to say that it’s made me cry twice this week and I hate everything about this whole cycle and process. And as a person who used to get jazz hands when she taught the Declaration of Independence to high schoolers...I feel sad about all the America things right now.
Not to leave on a sad note...but that’s what I’ve got. I hope you all have a lovely, restful weekend. ❤️
Erin- I appreciated your IG post this week and the courage it took to make that stand, to put it out there for everyone to read. You did it with eloquence and honesty. Well done!
I loved your post on IG this week Erin and I don't know if I'm biased but I think everyone should agree with your words and sentiments.
Dog training continues. He is starting to get the ring the bell to go out and he puts himself to bed at 830 like an old man and stays asleep until 6am. But during the day, he hates walks, is trying to assert dominance over my kids. Today he bit my daughter on the check when she bent down to pet him and SNARLED at my other daughter when she wouldn't give him her breakfast. I am, per usual, I'm in over my head which frustrates my husband to no end. It turned into a blow out between us. He says it's " puppy stuff" and idk I mean, he won't be a puppy for long he can't be doing that to my kids . He's agreed to try a trainer. I put an email in and I'm afraid I'm looking to this trainer to be my savior. I'm still wondering what possessed me to complicate my life in this way. Someone please tell me it will be ok.
Treasures: I ordered a huge show cubby thing for my mud room, I spent an inappropriate amount of time looking for pillows and throws for my couches that I ordered slipcovers for. I didn't pull the trigger on any. Any recs of oversized throw blankets or affordable pillows I'll take it! Why are throw pillows ever 60 bucks? It's shocking! The weather has been nice so I've been getting coffees and sitting outside which makes me feel more normal. I miss sitting in coffee shops and bookstores and libraries. We still can't do that here in michigan, so as long as the weather is nice I will take advantage. I'm afraid for what winter will be like. I can't escape to anywhere anymore.
I think I have been saying, “I just don’t have it in me this week” for the last.... 30-odd weeks. Thanks for always being real, Erin, and for still sending this out even when you don’t have it in you. It’s a bright spot in my day and week.
Hey everyone. I strongly relate to Erin's general *vibe* up there. It's been A WEEK.
Ever since the president was diagnosed last Friday and I have been checking Twitter compulsively, waiting for more news updates, and it's entirely unhealthy. I tried to set up Screen Time on my phone but WHY IS IT SO EASY TO IGNORE?! I thought I could have my husband set a key-code to prevent me from ignoring the limits, but no, it just prevents me from changing the settings? It's dumb. Any tips on how to abide by those boundaries appreciated.
I have also come to terms with the realization that I am mildly depressed. This has happened to me a few times in life, but I've never done much about it except ride it out until my circumstances change (bad semester in college, medical issue resolved, etc.). Any tips from seasoned depressed people? I know I need to exercise more, and I've been trying to get back into my Bible Recap plan, but I'm in Ezekiel and that's like... not helping that much?
ANYWAY. I do have a few treasures:
1. @mrsFridayNext on Instagram has a highlight about Devastating Crush Music where she crowd-sourced tunes to which people "nursed a devastating crush." It brought back lots of memz of listening to a One Republic song over and over in college thinking about my crush who I am 75% sure may be gay now. What was your devastating crush song??
OH and forgot to comment, also SUPER excited for the Selena series. FUN FACT *ding* -- when I was in college (oh so long ago) we had this On Campus movie channel where every week there was this schedule of random movies that they'd air on this special channel that you could tune into from your dorm rooms. I remember when Selena was on the docket and I watched it EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. it aired. It made me OBSESSED about Selena and as a gal in Minnesota in the early era of the Internet I remember learning so much about her. Did I use napster to download her music? YUP! And remember the Behind the Music on VH-1 about her?! OH MY WORD (thank you internet) it was amazing.
It's Friday, I'm in my mask. I have flip flops on and linen pants, the coffee is now at super gulpable temp..... LET'S GO!
A list of the treasures and feelings from my week in no particular order
1. Last week of a burst of warm weather in Minnesota. Now everyone, I love me some fall temps. I love that crispness in the air. The smell of the leaves. The fact I can sleep with windows open and not have pollen issues (I am a spring tree-budding allergy mess but the fall? NOTHING).... but having that moment of warmth to remind us that we will miss those temps before the winter rushes in. I don't mind it.
2. Still really loving my daily journaling practice. I'm not aiming for "x" words or pages or even time, but just taking SOME time and getting out some key feelings is helpful right now.
3. Jillian, Danielle, Erin S -- you all are amazing women that I am so thankful to getting to know. Please know you are gifts.
4. Sharpie gel pen- Due to the tikTok of the office supply lover that Jillian shared last week I did obtain some of these and they are great. Still not sure if they are THE PEN. So what pens do you all love. Drop em in the comments. I love a good pen.
5. Finished Even The Rich's Versace episodes -- they are great. I had a weird obsession with the Versace tragedy - because of its MN connections. I loved the Ryan Murphy series. I read books about this family. This podcast was a quick binge. And now I will listen to their Kennedy eps.
6. Celebrated my anniversary this week. 19 years. NINETEEN YEARS! Guys. It's a lot. Marriage is a lot or it can be at times. Darin and I are not perfect people so there have been times our marriage is not "perfect" but we have done a lot of work and we still are and its feeling better than it has been in a long time. We also binged on some take-out food from a favorite local steak place. As part of my entree there was a GORGEOUS tomato. Of course I showcased it on IG. (laughs)
7. The Voting posts. Oh my word. I don't have enough hearts to throw out related to these posts. Erin, Jamie, Kendra, Laura, Bri, --- so many of you. You stood up and you made amazing, thoughtful, well-written posts that truly inspired me. I actually cried to Danielle (girl, thank you for listening to me) expressing my relief and my feelings about these posts. This season. All of this season has been so hard to feel like an outlier for doing basic human kindness to protect others. Add in everything that has happened in Minneapolis this summer. Seeing those who can be so quick to show their hate and ugly. It made me so scared for the status of the world....Of my community. So those posts. Reading them just made me love all of these women a little more. Thank you for being brave. Thank you for speaking your truth. So many are seeing these. And those who seek to express their disdain on you. THIS SHALL NOT PASS. I will slam down a staff for each and every one of you.
8. Plugging away at my knitting for those who have requested items via We Got You Club. :)
9. The power of garlic bread. Got any random hamburger or hot dog buns in your kitchen? First off, of course you do, who actually magically uses them all out? I love adding a little butter or a drizzle of olive oil, some italian seasoning, some garlic powder or salt and some red pepper flake and placing under the broiler just long enough to get perfect golden brown and then eating quickly even if this means burning the roof of your mouth and scalding your fingertips. Did I eat 3 hot dog buns this way? ... Don't judge me! ;)
Oh my gosh! That grocery store musical made my morning. I started crying when the squeaky wheel joined😂😂 can’t wait to to start the comfortable words next week!
That grocery store musical almost made me down load tik tok but it 100% made me laugh so hard I choked AND I woke up my whole family. What a perfect way to start the weekend. As always you are doing the lords work Erin Moon.
Erin, that tiktok musical made my geeky musical performing heart burst! Love it so much!! 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 Thank you also for reminding me to buy Comfortable Words. I’ve procrastinated yet again 😆
I’m having a minor surgery today so all of your comments about your lives and various treasures is keeping my mind off what’s going on.. thank you!!! 🥰
For those who have struggled with infertility— how do you balance being hopeful and trusting God’s timing while simultaneously realizing that starting down the road of treatments could be a long haul? Some days I’ll be fine.. others, it feels overwhelming.
We NEED Lil Swipes camp! For sure! Each of you are a treasure to this community and I appreciate all of you.
Sarah posted today that many weeks she reads comments here but doesn’t have the energy to say anything and I feel that so hard. Most weeks I just wander around our alley and listen and click on those hearts but finding the energy to post something myself is just undoable.
But I have a treasure this week. I watched the Evolving Faith conference last week and it was phenomenal! I’ve struggled with my faith a lot but the past 7 years at a particular church has really done some bad things to me. But that conference... It didn’t fix things but it spoke to my soul. It made me feel not alone in my questions and struggles and anger. But also gave me a picture of faith on the other side of deconstruction. A faith that can handle questions & a God whose arms are open wide to all. It was just amazing and water for my parched heart.
And now it’s Friday! Which I have never celebrated so much as I do now that we’re doing remote learning. Just gotta make it to 3:30!
Many weeks I spend here reading comments without the energy to say anything. Today I attempt to muster some words.
📚Thankful to the person who commented somewhere about reading The Bear and the Nightingale trilogy which I have just finished. A delightful escape.
Spent a few hours this week debating Gods love with one of my sisters. It makes me tired. I already struggle to experience the love over the condemnation. The prevalence of this view in the church drives me away. More than ever I am thankful for the internet which allows me glimpses of my people who are out there even though I can’t always see them.
- If you haven't listened to this week's episode of the popcast in which Knox and Jamie preview the Bachelorette contestants, please do. It single handedly saved my Wednesday.
I look forward to reading about your weeks! When Lil Swipe Camp happens, I am there! :)
This week was also a little blah for me as well. I'm moving next week and lots of things are happening this month that I'm starting to feel a little overwhelmed. I cried three times Tuesday over the internet connection in my new house...shout out to everyone like me who suppresses their emotions until they cannot suppress anymore and then literally start crying about how their AT&T Fiber is in the garage...oof. Thank goodness it's Friday. Anyone have any moving tips/tricks they would like to share?
Some treasures:
1. I'm sure there are a bunch of you who are Ben Rector fans...or Ingrid Michaelson fans...can we just talk about the acoustic version of "It Would Be You?" ft. Ingrid??? Ugh so beautiful. (Also, one of the co-writers on that song is Jordy Searcy and he's an awesome musician as well and I 10/10 recommend his music)
2. I know that Jamie gave Emily in Paris a red light this week...but y'all I love this show. Not because its good. I love it because it's like watching bubble gum and is basically "basic American girl living abroad" porn. I thought about minoring in French in college and after watching this show I regret it. Maybe after COVID settles I can just quit life and move to Paris?? I'm willing to be the Lil Swipe living in France if we need someone there ;)
3. Kamala Harris's side eye during the debate gave me life. What a great example of being equal amounts of respectful and stern in sticky situations. I'm horrible at having that balance (re: me yelling at my mom that "I will never effing care about Fox News" during a heated debate one time) so it was nice to have an example of how to smile through the turds ya know?
Happy Friday, everyone! My treasure was actually delivered to me in a round-about way this week... by a potential Covid exposure. I saw my brother outdoors for about an hour last Sunday. He had no symptoms and we both wore masks the entire time. He tested positive for Covid two days later on Tuesday. I am a Kindergarten teacher, so when I reported it to my school, I was told I had to quarantine for 14 days from the exposure. I have cycled through sadness (I am 20 weeks pregnant tomorrow and had to reschedule THE big anatomy ultrasound that was supposed to happen yesterday- which was the first appointment my husband would have been be able to attend due to Covid), anger (I have been SO careful and diligent about wearing masks, etc. and this one incident has sidelined me for two weeks), guilt (what about my Kinders? How are they doing without me there?), fear (what happens if I do get Covid at 20 weeks pregnant?) and finally arrived at acceptance. I am feeling fine with no symptoms, and hopefully will stay that way. I woke up this morning with a refreshed spirit and am going to try to make the most of this unexpected break in real life, which I probably really needed.
Here I am, writing from a coffee shop, trying not to snort over the grocery store musical number. And also trying not to sing "writing from a coffee shop" to the same tune.
I want to thank you all for your prayers and encouragement re: sleep. THE LORD HATH PROVIDED. My oldest has been sleeping through the night again, and the baby popped two teeth. So we sleepin' over here, y'all. Holding on to it while I can. 😅
Things I'm looking forward to right now:
⭐️Comfortable Together. Of course. ❤️
⭐️Penny & Sparrow's Live on the Internet show a week from today. My heart could explode I'm so freakin' excited. They're going to premier a new original song and just... so much goodness. Anybody else going to watch?!
⭐️Yes, The Bachelorette. Do we need more nonsense? Well, no. But do we need more Popcast content? Always. 😂
⭐️One of my favorite up & coming artists, Charli Adams, announced that she's going to release her first full-length album next year. I've been waiting for this for SO LONG. If you're into nostalgic feelings and reveling in what it means to be young, she's your girl. Her EP "Good At Being Young" is in my ears often: https://open.spotify.com/album/2kVUq4DbkaS6xA33CC6EmQ?si=43WtinMvQ9KZtiuaQ5to7w
⭐️Not to mention, my baby turns 1 in a matter of weeks, and I can hardly believe it. He's going to be an astronaut for Halloween, and his birthday is right before Halloween, so hello space-themed birthday party.
Love to you all, MEAN IT. So grateful for what we have here. Whenever Swipe Up Camp happens, I'm there. ❤️
Just last week I was just thinking, "man, I'd love to have a retreat with these people." LIL SWIPES CAMP NEEDS TO BE A THING. IN JESUS NAME.
My treasures this week are:
- making my own pizza like Bri McKoy. I bought a pizza stone and everything. It's legit.
- the Peloton app. Because I am not a rich white suburban mom (shout out to all y'all who are tho, keep doin' your thang) I cannot afford the actual Peloton bike, but because gyms are closed-ish and I feel some type of way about working out in a public space in a pandemic (a large room where EVERYONE is breathing heavy, even through masks, gives me the heebie jeebies), I NEED some kind of work out. My mental health and stress management has been off the walls since the pandemic started. I finally decided to explore my options and I found a cheaper spin bike on Facebook Marketplace, drove out to a Chicago suburb to pick it up, and the lady was like "yeah, we did the Peloton hack with this for a couple of months, but we became so obsessed with it that my husband was just like, 'Babe. We're getting the Peloton.'" And if that isn't a romance for the ages, I don't know what is.
So anyway, I now have this bike, a cadence sensor from Amazon, and the app on my iPad and I'm obsessed with Cody's workouts. If any of y'all are Peloton people, please post your usernames in the comments! I'd love to follow more people. Also, please let me know who your favorite instructors are.
- I finished a pretty good mystery novel this week. It's called "The Guest List" by Lucy Foley. If you're a fan of Tana French, this also takes place in Ireland, but I'd say it was a lot more fast-paced than the TF books I've read. I normally don't like books that switch points of views, but this one was actually not confusing to follow at all. Not only does it switch points of view, but it jumps around in points in time, which again: sounds like it would be confusing and frustrating, but I actually found it easy to follow and it added to the suspense of the book. So if you're looking for some escapism into a beautiful island off the coast of Ireland where people are dying, give this one a read.
Yesterday morning I opened my gmail app excited to read Erin’s latest newsletter and it wasn’t there. What? I am on the West Coast so it’s always there waiting for me bright and early. I thought to myself, “That’s weird she wouldn’t leave us hanging this week of all weeks when we need some treasures.” I finally realized that it was only Thursday 🥴🤦🏻♀️. That's my week in a nutshell.
I want to thank Erin and the other peeps who shared yesterday about why they’re voting the way they are. It was so meaningful to hear their honest reflections. Thank you! Also I can’t wait for your latest review of the princess Christmas movie.
Treasures this week included getting up early for a long-ass hike up to Zanja Peak. Hiking has become a lifeline for me, especially this year. I am all about completing those stress cycles thanks to the fabulous book “Burnout” by the Nagoski sisters. Seriously, if you haven’t read it please do. It is such a wellspring of info to help combat *all this*.
When I’m stressed I often find comfort in consuming darker material. I don’t know why🤷🏻♀️-makes me thankful for my life I guess? “Hard but good” is one of my favorite genres. All that to say I really enjoyed the ESPN 30for30 podcast called Heavy Medals. It is a tight seven episode run that follows Bela and Marta Karolyi from Romania through their USA Gymnastics careers. All the top gymnasts were interviewed and it was a very eye-opening, sobering listen.
I also watched Emily in Paris. Was it a scintillating, deep character study with thoughtful dialogue? Hell no. But the clothes were fun, Paris as a backdrop was dreamy, and with our bare TV landscape it was a passable pallet cleanser from the news.
Looking forward to Monday and The Comfortable Words read through. I know I need it!
This has been a hard fought week. Everyone has had over flowing feelings ever where I look. My own house included, I’ve decided no less than one million times this week that I no longer want to be the mom and or in charge.
But y’all it doesn’t work that way, which sucks! My sister who is a barely functioning addict is getting on my nerves and my mom who is in the throws of grief over her sister is bugging me too. According to them I’m not grieving hard enough. I made a decision to ignore them for now.
My only treasures were a trip to Aldi and Target ( both of these stores are about 35 minutes away so it takes a big of planning) with my bff. Where I spent recklessly and bought a zillion pumpkins for $2.50 each. I have yet to figure out what to do with them all but something will!
The Great British Bake Off has been my hour of complete joy and peace for the past few weeks since it's been back. As it is for so many of us. I know the low-key and polite Britishness of the show calms us all. Then I realised I may be sitting on a goldmine of British shows that most lil' swipes don't know about yet and they could be calming your soul too. So I've written a list.
▪ Great British Sewing Bee
As it says on the tin. Like the bake off but with skirts instead of cakes. Same vibe, very non-competitive, happy to help each other, sewing competition.
▪ The Repair Shop
People bring in their beloved treasures that are worse for wear and a team of amazingly talented restorers bring them back to life. A huge variety of different objects every episode. The one constant, I always cry. Do you feel the need to cry about a jigsaw being repaired? Or maybe boxing gloves? This is your show.
▪ Countdown
A British treasure for nearly 40 years. It's basically just trying to make the longest word you can out of nine letters and the occasional maths game thrown in. Very sedate, but a British staple. So beloved they've actual made a post water-shed edition!
▪ QI
Stands for Quite Interesting. Is actually very interesting. The later seasons are hosted by Sandi Toksvig and Stephen Fry was the original host. Both are excellent. What I fall asleep to. Have an almost pavlovian response to the theme tune now.
▪ Taskmaster
Okay, so this one doesn't quite fit in with all the rest, but Noel Fielding is a contestant for series 4, it you're looking for more of him. It's a comedy game show and there is some adult language, but I enjoy it very much.
▪ Gogglebox
It is literally just people watching TV. I don't know why it's so good, but it is.
▪ Location, Location, Location
Just a property show, but with the beloved Kirstie and Phil.
▪ Grand Designs
Another property show, this time with only Phil. Shows unusual house builds from start to finish.
▪ Celebrity Bake Off
Did you know this was a thing? We have one-off episodes of bake off for charity where the four celebrities compete for just one day. You won't know who nearly any of the celebrities are, but does it matter? It's still more Bake Off. Tan from Queer Eye is in one episode.
My greatest treasures this week were the fly on Mike Pence’s head and finishing Ted Lasso. Y’all. Ted Lasso is the best show on tv right now (maybe ever) and will 100% cure what ails you with all *this* going on.
I have only treasures as my rose colored glasses are fixed firmly on my face during what is my first vacation since October 2019...(a moment of silence for 2019...) First of all, huge shout-out to Hannah Myer, yes, our Hannah Myer of the Lil Swipes community, for Best Snail Mail Pen Pal award. I went "dark" for a couple months and she checked in by email to see if I was ok 😭❤️. And she said she'd still be my friend even though I'm voting straight ticket R this year.
Other treasures: Reading Caste and engaging a 2 hour book book discussion with someone who doesn't agree with me politically. It was a gift to talk about these important things and come away still deeply respectful of each other.
And I discovered a beautiful historical fiction novel by the title Code Name: Helene that has been a delight to read on my vacation. (And now I sneak back to Jillian's Til Tok curation to watch them all).
Between allergies, a very hectic work week, and all the other things, my brain feels like mush. Let’s hope I can successfully make it through the work day. But anyways, here we go:
- Mindy Kaling secretly had another baby two months ago and just announced it last night 😳 Also her essay collection that released on amazon this week is fantastic!
- Challenger: the Final Flight on Netflix. As a lifelong NASA/space nerd, anything like this makes me emotional, both the tragic and triumphant. This is an important watch for anyone in a decision-making role in any capacity and a beautiful tribute to those lost as we hear from their loved ones
- I’ve been strictly isolating so that I can safely (and with peace of mind) see my grandparents this weekend for the first time in at least 10 months. I’m very excited!
Bad Movie Club is coming back, I'm so excited! Also, Erin, you used the word "chortle" and I just learned an hour ago that it is Lewis Carroll's blend of 'chuckle' and 'snort', so I thought I'd share.
My mission this week was to get up earlier in the mornings. I FAILED. I have been ridiculously sleepy all week. Not only have I slept late every morning, I have also been taking 1,5-2 hour naps in the afternoon and nearly fallen asleep with my face in my dinner plate like a toddler. I blame October. 🤷♀️
I did find a few treasures when I managed to stay awake though.😉
Last weekend I made cinnamon rolls. They were delicious and I've been eating them every day.
On Tuesday I got a haircut and I'm loving it!
Dick Johnson is Dead on Netflix. It's either the best or the worst thing to watch a month after your father's Alzheimer's diagnosis but for me, I think it was the best and I will be watching it again to help me process everything. Gosh, I'm crying just thinking about it. 😭
Back to Florida being hot as balls. Need the humidity to back up! ☀️
🏈 FNL: wrapping up S2: Larrabee is downright rude! Glad Julie stepped up and confessed to Coach that Riggins didn’t do anything unjust. Took you long enough... why does Julie irritate me so? Jason disappears through episodes... where does he go?
☕️ Living for coffee meetings in the park with one of my friends every Friday morning. So nice to put my feet in the grass and share space with a human.
🛎 Sometimes people are only in your life for a short season and that’s ok. It’s ok to let them go, especially if you’re philosophically different from how you “Friend”.
📚The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai. This was a 5🌟snot alarm fictional account of the AIDS epidemic in Chicago in the 80s. Started 🏚👻Home Before Dark by Riley Sager and I’m already SUPER creeped out.
Fellow Space Nerd here - Spot the ISS is so cool! We drag our boys outside whenever there is a good viewing to watch. Taught my Dad about it when we went to visit him at his land out in the country (he gets the BEST views!)
Treasures:
🎧 walking & listening to podcasts as a break from work. This has been amazing for my stress level, and gives my eyes a break from the screen. I shoot for 15 minutes, twice a day.
💇🏻♀️ getting my hair cut and colored today. Letting my color process and reading a book uninterrupted is seriously self care to me!
Also loved all of the #thisiswhy posts yesterday. Helped me put into words how I was feeling and inspired me to consider making a similar post.
Looks like plenty of good treasures to me! The Tiktok thread is exactly why I love it, and part 6 SENT me. And thank you, Erin, for being part of the group of sharing about your voting platform and important issues yesterday. Well worth the energy, and I hope you feel that way too.
This week was also a doozy for me 😐
💩 a coworker was let go this week and it’s doubled my workload (as well as the rest of my team’s to pick up the slack) so been trying to get my head above water at work. This has meant way more hours spent - praying this is just a season and for the perseverance to get the work done well.
🎶 made this spotify list this week for instant serotonin and motivation. Each song has a memory tied, and listening to it to power through the week has been the comforting familiarity and drive I’ve needed. Have at it, but be warned it is a little wild 😂 https://open.spotify.com/playlist/063Lfg322sVwc8lQDVwkUc?si=RpyFl5xoSmWroXQ0FB8LjA
👥 My mom and I had a lovely chat this week, talking about some of the things I’ve been wrestling with faith-wise and her college aspirations to politics that I never knew about (a summer internship with the Dept of Education changed her mind 😂). It was good to talk through some of the disenchantment I have because many Christians in my circles growing up approach other people as debate opportunities, not as people worthy of love and care. That has really bothered me, and I’m looking for the right balance of care and “reputation” before we debate - how are we to be believed if we don’t have any actions backing it up?
Love it friend. Your this is why post made me weep yesterday. Me and my 3 girlfriends shared it on our story. Whew. You’re a brave gal. Happy Friday folks!
I've debated about this comment many times, but ultimately landed on the fact that I wanted to participate in the conversations around this neighborhood, and doing so without saying anything about what is going on in my real life felt very disingenuous. I will try not to go on too long, but no promises. So, last week my daughter and I were in a car accident. I am physically fine (just a few bruises and sore muscles), but my daughter suffered a serious head trauma and was life flighted from the scene. She's stable and in ICU, and we are taking things one day at a time. Or at least, I am trying to. Some moments my brain starts spinning. I won't pretend this isn't the hardest thing I have ever done, because it is. But in this darkness, there is also light: 1. Our family and friends and community have SHOWN UP. In dozens of ways. And in a year where I have felt so lonely, this has been extra humbling and remarkable. 2. Living in Houston, she was able to go to one of the best pediatric neuro trauma hospitals in the country. 3. GBBS, The Popcast, audiobooks have been keeping me distracted during moments when I desperately need it. 4. The Comfortable Words. For such a time as this. I KNOW I need it. 5. That Twitter thread about the tree and the ISS was magical!
Ok. That was so long, but I will leave you with a shirt anecdote: a friend i used to work with told me one day about a sermon she heard once where the preacher kept using the phrase "peace and grace" and all she could think of was "peas and gravy." It became our funny-but-kind-of-serious send-off and benediction to each other. So, in that spirit: peas and gravy to everyone.
“Your people are out there, even in the dark.” 😭 If that isn’t a fantastic description of the Lil Swipes- I don’t know what is. I’d buy that T-shirt in a heartbeat.
Little Wild Women update. Littlest wild woman has moved on from the oven door ride to two new favs:
1. Stealing my dish towels and hanging them around her neck like she’s a middle age woman who just finished a major jazzercise workout.
2. When she gets really worked up about something, she likes to sit on top of a floor vent behind the couch. You need to put yourself in timeout in a small space with some air blowing on you? Be my guest! Actually a pretty great coping strategy, UNTIL one day when I hear a muffled whining noise. I peek behind the couch to see what’s happening and see... toes just barely sticking out. A smidge later- I see little fingers from underneath the front of the couch. She loves to climb the entire way under the couch, but the way she emerges definitely gives me some flashbacks to labor and delivery 😳😂
Littlest woman also has some BIG feelings and is not the greatest at sleeping (which tends to exacerbate said big feelings). I don’t consider myself to be a very “crunchy” person (on a scale of a flour tortilla to cinnamon twists fresh from the fryer, I’m probably like a cheesy gordita?) but after exhausting every get-your-kid-to-be-a-decent-sleeper tool that I have in my arsenal, I *whispers* bought essential oils. I am NOT a fan of MLMs and the weird voodoo cultish energy around this kind of thing, but I’m desperate to average more than 4-5 hours of sleep a night, so I’m willing to give it a go. I figure worst case scenario, my house just ends up smelling better? Thank you for listening to my confession.
Erin, your crest is lovely!!! I need to go back to IG to hear your break down of it. I designed a crest at age 15-16 that was so heavy with symbolism you could clobber someone with it. There were crowns, there was liturgical imagery, there was a full on depiction of my name in pictures (sarah Lindsey means “princess of the linden tree isle” so THERE.) and that tells you the kind of kid I was.
I loved the ISS / tree id’er story. That’s the kind of thing that would happen to my mom and she would be in wonder of the whole thing as well.
TREASURES 🏴☠️⚔️👑
- Im a lefty and the boy is a righty. He sent me this on Instagram Tuesday: “If you date a left handed person as a righty it means you can hold hands together while holdings swords in your dominant hands and fighting off mutual enemies ⚔️ 💛” 🎶so this is love hmmmhmmm so this looveeee🎶
- Related to that, we are nearing the time of year when I said, hmm I think I like that boy and he said hmmm I really should buy that motorcycle so I can get that girl. (Not because he thought the motorcycle would woo me, but because boy logic says if you have the motorcycle before the girl, the girl can’t tell you not to get a motorcycle. Reader. I helped him decide on his motorcycle. I didn’t care.) I’m not saying I’m a person who remembers every little date but I’m totally that girl. It makes me happy to pass road markers in my memory and see how far we’ve come.
- My grandparents are in the state for the first time since my sister got married last year, so I’m taking a weekend trip to Nashville to see them and the rest of my family. I’m excited. Also a little nervous cause it’s politicking season, and I’m the weird progressive/conservative of my fam but yeah.
- ENOLA HOLMES! I had a rough day Wednesday and my sweet friend in Charlotte, NC asked if I wanted to have a virtual movie night to cheer me up. We have sworn to raise our daughters to fight in dresses well, and our Victorian hearts were all a flutter with thats earnest handclasp at the end. What a delightful two hours spent.
— my only TikTok contribution is this delightful human who is making an Aravis from Horse and His Boy cosplay based on historical Turkish fashion. I am in AWE. https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJPYRULT/
Again, reading this later rather than sooner. But I love this newsletter so much and after a hard day, finding out that Erin loves Selena (like a true Texan) was just the right dose of happiness that I needed.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for the follow recommend for Spark Notes on Instagram. My new favorite follow.
I’m always SUPER late to the party here, and feel like if I’m not able to comment first thing on Friday then what’s the point, but oh well I’m here today and that’s how life goes. It’s Thanksgiving here in Canada this weekend so I’ve been looking extra hard for treasures.
🌟 My son found out on Thursday that he was accepted into his first choice of University in the exact program he wanted (secondary education) so that was major cause for celebration! He said he feels like the biggest pressure of his senior year is lifted, so yay to less stress.
🌟 We are spending our fifth Thanksgiving in a row at an adorable cabin in Jasper National Park and being away from our home for the first time in months is giving me life. Trees, mountains, lakes and nature are soothing my weary soul.
🌟 I wrote three(!) midterms this past week and feel pretty happy with my efforts. Hopefully my grades will reflect the hours I’ve spent bleary-eyed in front of my textbooks.
🌟 I ordered two of the Knix tank tops and they are magical. https://knix.ca/collections/tanks-tees/products/evolution-tank
🌟 This Clarins eye cream is definitely making my eye are look better, and as an added bonus it doubles as a lash serum. I can actually see a difference in my lashes. https://www.clarins.ca/en/total-eye-lift/C080033248.html
🌟 King’s Cross Pumpkin Spice liquor has definitely upped my PSL game. Cheers!
🌟 Very much looking forward to The Comfortable Words next week. My only faith community for the last couple years has been The Bible Binge (after some serious betrayal at our church) so I’m excited to connect with you on a deeper level.
🍁Happy Thanksgiving fellow 🇨🇦 Swipes🍁
It took me all day to get to this thread but I'm always glad I did. I have only one treasure because it's just the most precious thing. I'm not brief so bear with your girl.
Yesterday, my sister-in-law Nina told me about how my oldest nephew, Dominic talked to some Mormon missionaries trolling their neighborhood the previous evening.
Now let me stop and tell you about this kid for a second. He's 16 years old going on 17. He's just the most secure person I know. He likes what he likes and he doesn't care what anyone thinks. I've never known a teenager or adult for that matter who is so sure of himself but in the most humble nonchalant way. He has competed in Rubix cube competitions on a National level, I'm talking neighborhood kids used to come to his door to watch him solve a cube in something like 13 seconds. He stopped playing football last year because he just wasn't feeling it plus two-a-days are the worst. His favorite type of music is worship music. He loves puzzling, film production and only knows how to cook one thing, turkey sandwiches. He's taller than I am and has his driver's license. He just started running, like of his own volition, during quarantine. He loves his family so fiercely especially his 5 year old sister.
So back to the Mormons. He was delivering something to a neighbor and on the way back encountered these missionaries who are probably not very much older than he is. They started asking him questions, he answered calmly in his very Dominic kind of way. He talked to them for 45 minutes, on a school night! He said it wasn't aggressive or confrontational. They talked about the Bible a lot, I guess. When Nina, my SIL asked him why he kept talking to them, he said, "Because I care about them."
CUE SOBS
I mean...what? I died, and raised my own little missionary hands to my heart. I'm right now thinking of all the people I know with any kind of evangelistic gifts that I can get this kid to hang out with on the regular.
This week has been a big ole bucket of suck. I’m trying to press through it. It’s not going super well. But if I wallow in it, it’ll swallow me whole. I could use some prayers. Anyway, here’s my treasures from this week:
🙌🏻 My English teacher gave us the best and easiest homework this week. “Listen to Hamilton”. I think it may be my favorite homework assignment ever.
🎉 I tweeted about said homework and got a RT by the official Hamilton Twitter. Pretty darn cool, if I do say so myself.
💕 I got to see several of my people this week!
Late to the party after getting distracted with, ya know, work, but here are my treasures!
- Bri McKoy's #ThisIsWhy video on IG. She is light and love.
- Following vin_ayy on IG. Y'all. He videos himself talking from the perspective of animals. His impersonations are life giving. OHMYGOSH it's so good.
- I've been exclusively dating online for the past year and over the last month I've developed a crush on a "real life" guy who I didn't meet on an app (!!!) and he's coming over tonight for a movie night with some other friends and I'm nauseated with excitement. So yeah. T and Ps.
- Subscribed to the paid version of Sectional Healing from Knox McKoy (or ya boi, however you like it) and am so happy with all the content I get from him now. Such a good, nuanced writer.
I hope you all have fabulous weekends full of good sleep, yummy carbs, and absolutely no douche canoes.
Erin Moon, your translated Latin makes absolute sense to me. Because, that’s my brain at its finest. I ❤️ it so much!
Also, not long after Selena was gone, I worked in southern East Texas at a wilderness camp for emotionally-challenged teen girls, and they were literally *in mourning* for her. Though I really didn’t understand the depth of it, I have always related Selena to those girls at that time in my life. It was a trifecta of emotional resonance: my own depression, their shattered lives, and a spiritual reawakening that led me back to Jesus. For years I watched the Selena movie every time it was on (bc Jon Seda, my beloved, whom I’d already discovered), and her albums (CASSETTE TAPES!) were my soundtrack driving back and forth to Houston from the camp. I haven’t decided if I want to revisit that time in life by watching the new Netflix project, but it certainly brought back memories with the trailer.
My own week has been... different. Y’all, I slept! Every night! At bedtime! 🙌🏻 A couple nights I even drifted off while lying on the couch watching tv! What is happening?!? I’ve got 2 theories on this new occurrence: (a) some of y’all have been praying for me 🥰, and (b) I began reading the “Gospels in 30 days” plan. I’ve been scattershot in devotions for a while, so I took Annie Downs’s suggestion and started the 30-day plan. It’s no coincidence that my inner life flipped back in place after settling in to some focused time with God. It’s been truly GLORIOUS to see daylight again and be productive.
I made one note this week on a Treasure. I’m catching up on Tsh Oxendreider’s podcast, The Good List, and episode 46 includes a fantastic list of creators to explore: https://tshoxenreider.com/46.
This one article stood out as supremely relevant for me in this season of life: On writing as catharsis, dealing with the deluge of thoughts we’re having: https://stephanieduncansmith.substack.com/p/4879958_slant-letter-writing-as-a-practice-of-resilience
All in all, this week has restored me in literal and figurative ways and has given me so much LIFE.
Hello, friends! Like most of you, it has been quite a week. I've got to go visit my grandfather tomorrow (he isn't likely to live much longer and my anxiety has been through the roof about visiting) and I know it will be hard but I know I'll be glad I did it in the end. My doctor adjusted my meds and suggested I cut caffeine so I'm currently trying to dig myself out of the deep dark hole every morning. I've always had issues with mornings but it has been especially rough this week. But, there have been a few treasures.
-I found a baby yoda travel mug on clearance and snapped it right up. My half caf coffee is less sad when placed in this vessel. I also made Bri's pumpkin simple syrup to add and it is a genuine delight.
-I decided that one of my new October traditions was going to be our own version of 31 Days of Halloween. We've been making dinner and watching a fall/halloween/spooky vibes movie a few nights a week and it has been such a shot of serotonin. So far we've done: Clue, Dial M for Murder, Halloweentown I & II, The Addams Family, The Addams Family Values, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Practical Magic, and tonight we'll do Rocky Horror.
-Homemade Fried Rice!!! My health has been a real issue lately. I have dealt with chronic health issues since my teen years and mostly had everything under control but this last month I had some new symptoms crop up and my doctor suggested I cut gluten, dairy, and caffeine as much as possible. It has been a struggle to find anything my body would tolerate and that wasn't a chore to make. Homemade fried rice swooped in and saved the day. I'm making batches at the beginning of the week and then eating it for lunches and occasional dinners.
- I got new Halloween potholders fro $1 a piece at WM last week and they make me so happy I've decided to keep them out year round.
-Our new house is almost ready! We had to be out of our old place before our new place was ready so we'll be moving for the second time in two months but it will all be worth it when we're done. It has enough space for me to have an office/reading nook, my partner to have a music room, and we have a huge fenced in back yard so we can FINALLY get a dog. We'll be closer to both our jobs and right across the street from friends/the family I babysit for regularly. It also has a screened in front porch and a huge back porch. Also, there are several old school french style doors that were imported from England in the 30s and I am over the moon.
This week has been hard and things will probably not get better very soon, but it's nice to look for the moments of goodness to balance it out.
Hi! Hello! I'm here! Much later to the party than I would like to be today.
Let's jump right in, shall we? This weeks has honestly been more turd than treasure, but I'm plotting some things to change that. First on the list, my favorite second born's computer decided it no longer wants to charge or turn on at all so we got to ship her 3ish month old laptop back to the maker for warranty repairs. Hooray for warranties I guess, but this means my laptop has been moved to her possession during school hours, thus reducing my ability to do any of the computer things including hanging out with my favorite Friday internet gang before 2pm on most days. Boo! Ex-husband makes a not so surprising reappearance on the TURD list this week because after he finally reached out to the ocular specialist regarding our oldest daughter's diagnosis and care; said specialist felt compelled to call me on Saturday morning outside of office hours to express his concerns with my ex's attitude and his potential detriment to our daughters recovery and progress. Not to mention that he see's him as a likely cause for her anxiety and stress. UGH! I hate, hate, hate feeling like I cannot protect my child from the person who is most detrimental to her well being right now. Add to that weird stomach bug ickyness within our home and general over-it-ness and we're a barrel of laughs.
Treasures this week in no particular order. Goat Cheese Biscuits from Shauna Niequist Bread & Wine - so good! Countdown to Christmas Stitch Along from Hanana Hand Makes has fed my sense of completion and is about as close to meditation as I get. I'm delightfully excited about the sweet little advent calendar that is coming together piece by piece and looking forward to filling the little pockets with the perfect beads/charms for my girls. We finished Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire this week which means tonight we get to watch the movie! That and homemade pizza are the light at the end of the today tunnel. Finally we do not have the girls on Oct. 31, but I'm not letting that stop me from plotting a fun "halloweenie" evening for the 4 of us the weekend before complete with costumes, glow-in the dark candy egg hunt, creepy themed dinner (Thanks Raddish Kids!) Spooky Charcuterie Boards and Hocus Pocus.
Looking forward to Comfortable Together next week.
Excited to finally catch up on everyone's comments and the goings on for the last week.
My treasure is Erin, Jamie, and others sharing their #thisiswhy2020. I'm feeling so encouraged. I've always been more progressive and it has felt lonely sometimes in the Christian faith, although not necessarily in my very blue state. I have been trying to learn more about a global Christian faith - not just an Americanized one - which I fear many, myself included, can fall into.
I LOVED the twitter thread about the trees. My husband has an airplane tracker app and sometimes sits on our deck looking up where the planes are going that pass over head. (we are in a flight path, much to his delight.) I sent him the thread and he was like, "MY PEOPLE!"
That leaf/international space station twitter thread was soothing to my sad soul. Just perfect.
My treasure this week is the rescue and grace of Amazon Fresh. I knew my friend’s birthday was this month. I kept telling myself that I need to look up the date. I was totally taken off guard yesterday that it was her birthday already. By the time I realized this, it was too late to have flowers delivered the same day and I was starting to feel desperate. Enter Amazon Fresh. I was able to have multiple flower bunches from Whole Foods delivered by 6pm. She loved it! She has many vases and loves arranging (and is good at it). She ended up with eight vases of flowers to put all around her house. Whew! It was a close one with a happy ending. Bonus: It was a lot less expensive than having a flower arrangement delivered.
I am ready for The Princess Switch. Living with a male spouse, 2 male children, a male rabbit, and a possibly male fish, has me ready for guaranteed me only viewing. Bubble gum viewing works.
Erin, I just have to say, thank you for your gracious responses to people (who don't even follow you) coming at you for your Instagram post about voting this week. If I ever had the bravery to post that I'm voting for Biden for all my conservative friends and family to see (which I wouldn't - type 9 over here who once told her parents she thought Obama was a great president and you would have thought I told them I killed someone), I would 100% turn off comments and DMs. But if I didn't, I don't think I'd be able to respond to the hate/opposition as kindly and succinctly as your simple "thank you for sharing your thoughts and opinions" responses. I probably would be much more passy-agressy, if I responded at all.
I have zero things to share here because this week has just been kind of blah, and I'm just counting down the hours until I can get a long hug tonight after sitting in Friday traffic to see The Boy. I appreciate everyone sharing their treasures to make my way through.
Hello everyone. This is my first proper post with some things that I've loved recently.
Firstly as a former teacher this account has made me cry with laughter (skip to the teacher series ones they're the best ones) https://www.tiktok.com/@kyronhamilton?lang=en he's also on instagram. I don't know if these would only be funny to teachers/students from the UK so that would be interesting to hear.
If you're in need of a happy cry then may I recommend this classic video? https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XLFEvHWD_NE
And last link is this for voting for penguin of the year at New Zealand's Aquarium it is so cute! https://www.nationalaquarium.co.nz/visit/penguin-of-the-year
Good things I've watched recently- rewatching columbo from the start it's so good and easy viewing. I surprised myself with how much I enjoyed the second born royals movie on Disney plus. A nice, switch off watch. If you like 'british' humour or just some silliness then look for clips of would I lie to you. It's a panel show where they have to guess by listening to the other guests stories if they're lying or not and there are some absolute brilliant ones. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1vE8ExuuNZQ
If you can get it then there is a BBC show called Mortimer and Whitehouse go fishing and it's actually little to do with fishing more focused on the lovely male friendship between the two men and very funny too.
I hope this upcoming weekend and week treats you as well as possible and that you are able to find pockets of joy.
Thank you for the reference "Anything for Selenas." Also a huge Selena fan and I feel seen. Put a huge smile on my face in an otherwise challenging week.
I just wanted to do a shout out to Erin Moon, Kendra, Laura and Jamie. Well done all of you; so proud of your words. The use of your platforms in a way that’s important and matters to you made me so full of gratitude.
I’m so sorry for the ugly words, hateful inbox messages and those who felt the need to announce their departure. I’ve been on the receiving end of hateful internet strangers. It still stings because you are human, I just the sting doesn’t last. Truly well done. 🤎🤎🤎🤎
It has been some kind of week over here. Monday morning began with the woman who runs the schedule at my counselor's office getting angry with me for not receiving her text message about my appointment being cancelled. She texted the wrong number. And so it went for the past 4 days.
For the first time in my life, I dropped my phone in the toilet yesterday. My treasure this week is that a bag of rice was all my phone needed, and I got a good laugh about it.
I know I'm not alone in this, but I've started listening to the Harry Potter series and it's been a balm to my heart. I'm in book one, so this hasn't been going on for too long, but it's been exactly what I've needed in the most difficult week. And, to continue the theme of heart-soothing media: Ted Lasso. What a wonderful show. It's just good. That's the only word I can come up with to describe it. I feel so peaceful when watching a show with a main character who is so kind and good. I love it.
So, so excited for Comfortable Together.
I'm running a half marathon tomorrow, so I'll see you all next Friday if I survive ;)
Hey, all—happy Friday. 🙂 This past week wasn’t much to write home about. Not bad, not amazing. But I’ll take middle of the road.
🌳 The tree Twitter thread was amazing. I am mildly obsessed with trees and regularly acknowledge to myself and others how happy they make me feel. I’ve even got a tree Insta account (@woodsofaffirmation) where I post tree pictures and pair them with thoughtful and contemplative quotes. I felt the moment between those two people on an existential level for sure.
👯♀️ Another friend and I have decided to be in each other’s family bubbles going into this Michigan winter, and we hung out last night like normal people. We drank wine. We ate cheese. We talked about all the things. It was a serotonin shot in the brain that I needed.
📚 I’m re-reading Harry Potter and it is such good escapism from...everything.
😕 I am going to be honest with you fam, but I’m super conflicted over voting. I don’t know that I really want to hash it out on here, I just needed to say that it’s made me cry twice this week and I hate everything about this whole cycle and process. And as a person who used to get jazz hands when she taught the Declaration of Independence to high schoolers...I feel sad about all the America things right now.
Not to leave on a sad note...but that’s what I’ve got. I hope you all have a lovely, restful weekend. ❤️
Erin- I appreciated your IG post this week and the courage it took to make that stand, to put it out there for everyone to read. You did it with eloquence and honesty. Well done!
I loved your post on IG this week Erin and I don't know if I'm biased but I think everyone should agree with your words and sentiments.
Dog training continues. He is starting to get the ring the bell to go out and he puts himself to bed at 830 like an old man and stays asleep until 6am. But during the day, he hates walks, is trying to assert dominance over my kids. Today he bit my daughter on the check when she bent down to pet him and SNARLED at my other daughter when she wouldn't give him her breakfast. I am, per usual, I'm in over my head which frustrates my husband to no end. It turned into a blow out between us. He says it's " puppy stuff" and idk I mean, he won't be a puppy for long he can't be doing that to my kids . He's agreed to try a trainer. I put an email in and I'm afraid I'm looking to this trainer to be my savior. I'm still wondering what possessed me to complicate my life in this way. Someone please tell me it will be ok.
Treasures: I ordered a huge show cubby thing for my mud room, I spent an inappropriate amount of time looking for pillows and throws for my couches that I ordered slipcovers for. I didn't pull the trigger on any. Any recs of oversized throw blankets or affordable pillows I'll take it! Why are throw pillows ever 60 bucks? It's shocking! The weather has been nice so I've been getting coffees and sitting outside which makes me feel more normal. I miss sitting in coffee shops and bookstores and libraries. We still can't do that here in michigan, so as long as the weather is nice I will take advantage. I'm afraid for what winter will be like. I can't escape to anywhere anymore.
Have a great weekend ladies!
Fellow knitters -->
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/rbg-dissent-collar
I may be trying to make one of these soon :)
I think I have been saying, “I just don’t have it in me this week” for the last.... 30-odd weeks. Thanks for always being real, Erin, and for still sending this out even when you don’t have it in you. It’s a bright spot in my day and week.
Hey everyone. I strongly relate to Erin's general *vibe* up there. It's been A WEEK.
Ever since the president was diagnosed last Friday and I have been checking Twitter compulsively, waiting for more news updates, and it's entirely unhealthy. I tried to set up Screen Time on my phone but WHY IS IT SO EASY TO IGNORE?! I thought I could have my husband set a key-code to prevent me from ignoring the limits, but no, it just prevents me from changing the settings? It's dumb. Any tips on how to abide by those boundaries appreciated.
I have also come to terms with the realization that I am mildly depressed. This has happened to me a few times in life, but I've never done much about it except ride it out until my circumstances change (bad semester in college, medical issue resolved, etc.). Any tips from seasoned depressed people? I know I need to exercise more, and I've been trying to get back into my Bible Recap plan, but I'm in Ezekiel and that's like... not helping that much?
ANYWAY. I do have a few treasures:
1. @mrsFridayNext on Instagram has a highlight about Devastating Crush Music where she crowd-sourced tunes to which people "nursed a devastating crush." It brought back lots of memz of listening to a One Republic song over and over in college thinking about my crush who I am 75% sure may be gay now. What was your devastating crush song??
2. It's the spit-up for me: https://www.tiktok.com/@negative_normal/video/6879057365799308549?_d=secCgsIARCbDRgBIAIoARI%2BCjzhPXcFUUATSdjbpXCsQKsEOmXsdx3wnTW7yAqMvVYZNB2SvR7Auy6xB7Nbs6voRV3Am6kogsNtUQ9666QaAA%3D%3D&language=en&preview_pb=0&share_item_id=6879057365799308549&share_link_id=282BDBF8-BD73-47DC-9191-2085433CFC63×tamp=1601860612&tt_from=sms&u_code=0&utm_campaign=client_share&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=sms&source=h5_m
3. Votes for Dinos: https://www.tiktok.com/@iam_cking/video/6880581836494458117?_d=secCgsIARCbDRgBIAIoARI%2BCjxyaSjLhhPY0Yci%2FevUi%2FM0rLNDYGt9yMjnPWU7LJCZGNmR41NjL5YTNGII6Qs7PvFFG%2BAPJkNfP6BoAagaAA%3D%3D&language=en&preview_pb=0&share_item_id=6880581836494458117&share_link_id=F75BE530-D8D7-4EE9-A473-DD657F673303×tamp=1602074075&tt_from=copy&u_code=0&utm_campaign=client_share&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=copy&source=h5_m&sender_device=pc&sender_web_id=6811518528836847109&is_from_webapp=1
OH and forgot to comment, also SUPER excited for the Selena series. FUN FACT *ding* -- when I was in college (oh so long ago) we had this On Campus movie channel where every week there was this schedule of random movies that they'd air on this special channel that you could tune into from your dorm rooms. I remember when Selena was on the docket and I watched it EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. it aired. It made me OBSESSED about Selena and as a gal in Minnesota in the early era of the Internet I remember learning so much about her. Did I use napster to download her music? YUP! And remember the Behind the Music on VH-1 about her?! OH MY WORD (thank you internet) it was amazing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xf3X-PnsnWU
It's Friday, I'm in my mask. I have flip flops on and linen pants, the coffee is now at super gulpable temp..... LET'S GO!
A list of the treasures and feelings from my week in no particular order
1. Last week of a burst of warm weather in Minnesota. Now everyone, I love me some fall temps. I love that crispness in the air. The smell of the leaves. The fact I can sleep with windows open and not have pollen issues (I am a spring tree-budding allergy mess but the fall? NOTHING).... but having that moment of warmth to remind us that we will miss those temps before the winter rushes in. I don't mind it.
2. Still really loving my daily journaling practice. I'm not aiming for "x" words or pages or even time, but just taking SOME time and getting out some key feelings is helpful right now.
3. Jillian, Danielle, Erin S -- you all are amazing women that I am so thankful to getting to know. Please know you are gifts.
4. Sharpie gel pen- Due to the tikTok of the office supply lover that Jillian shared last week I did obtain some of these and they are great. Still not sure if they are THE PEN. So what pens do you all love. Drop em in the comments. I love a good pen.
5. Finished Even The Rich's Versace episodes -- they are great. I had a weird obsession with the Versace tragedy - because of its MN connections. I loved the Ryan Murphy series. I read books about this family. This podcast was a quick binge. And now I will listen to their Kennedy eps.
6. Celebrated my anniversary this week. 19 years. NINETEEN YEARS! Guys. It's a lot. Marriage is a lot or it can be at times. Darin and I are not perfect people so there have been times our marriage is not "perfect" but we have done a lot of work and we still are and its feeling better than it has been in a long time. We also binged on some take-out food from a favorite local steak place. As part of my entree there was a GORGEOUS tomato. Of course I showcased it on IG. (laughs)
7. The Voting posts. Oh my word. I don't have enough hearts to throw out related to these posts. Erin, Jamie, Kendra, Laura, Bri, --- so many of you. You stood up and you made amazing, thoughtful, well-written posts that truly inspired me. I actually cried to Danielle (girl, thank you for listening to me) expressing my relief and my feelings about these posts. This season. All of this season has been so hard to feel like an outlier for doing basic human kindness to protect others. Add in everything that has happened in Minneapolis this summer. Seeing those who can be so quick to show their hate and ugly. It made me so scared for the status of the world....Of my community. So those posts. Reading them just made me love all of these women a little more. Thank you for being brave. Thank you for speaking your truth. So many are seeing these. And those who seek to express their disdain on you. THIS SHALL NOT PASS. I will slam down a staff for each and every one of you.
8. Plugging away at my knitting for those who have requested items via We Got You Club. :)
9. The power of garlic bread. Got any random hamburger or hot dog buns in your kitchen? First off, of course you do, who actually magically uses them all out? I love adding a little butter or a drizzle of olive oil, some italian seasoning, some garlic powder or salt and some red pepper flake and placing under the broiler just long enough to get perfect golden brown and then eating quickly even if this means burning the roof of your mouth and scalding your fingertips. Did I eat 3 hot dog buns this way? ... Don't judge me! ;)
With that image. (laughs)
I wish you all the best of things
I wish you all the light that lifts you
Mel
Oh my gosh! That grocery store musical made my morning. I started crying when the squeaky wheel joined😂😂 can’t wait to to start the comfortable words next week!
That grocery store musical almost made me down load tik tok but it 100% made me laugh so hard I choked AND I woke up my whole family. What a perfect way to start the weekend. As always you are doing the lords work Erin Moon.
Happy Friday LIL SWIPES!!
Erin, that tiktok musical made my geeky musical performing heart burst! Love it so much!! 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 Thank you also for reminding me to buy Comfortable Words. I’ve procrastinated yet again 😆
I’m having a minor surgery today so all of your comments about your lives and various treasures is keeping my mind off what’s going on.. thank you!!! 🥰
For those who have struggled with infertility— how do you balance being hopeful and trusting God’s timing while simultaneously realizing that starting down the road of treatments could be a long haul? Some days I’ll be fine.. others, it feels overwhelming.
We NEED Lil Swipes camp! For sure! Each of you are a treasure to this community and I appreciate all of you.
Sarah posted today that many weeks she reads comments here but doesn’t have the energy to say anything and I feel that so hard. Most weeks I just wander around our alley and listen and click on those hearts but finding the energy to post something myself is just undoable.
But I have a treasure this week. I watched the Evolving Faith conference last week and it was phenomenal! I’ve struggled with my faith a lot but the past 7 years at a particular church has really done some bad things to me. But that conference... It didn’t fix things but it spoke to my soul. It made me feel not alone in my questions and struggles and anger. But also gave me a picture of faith on the other side of deconstruction. A faith that can handle questions & a God whose arms are open wide to all. It was just amazing and water for my parched heart.
And now it’s Friday! Which I have never celebrated so much as I do now that we’re doing remote learning. Just gotta make it to 3:30!
Many weeks I spend here reading comments without the energy to say anything. Today I attempt to muster some words.
📚Thankful to the person who commented somewhere about reading The Bear and the Nightingale trilogy which I have just finished. A delightful escape.
Spent a few hours this week debating Gods love with one of my sisters. It makes me tired. I already struggle to experience the love over the condemnation. The prevalence of this view in the church drives me away. More than ever I am thankful for the internet which allows me glimpses of my people who are out there even though I can’t always see them.
Hi friends!
Happy friday! Not much worth mentioning happening 'round these parts lately.
- Thank you, Erin et al, who are participating in #thisiswhy2020. It helped me feel less alone in my red state; I may have started drafting my own.
- Leslie Odom Jr singing Without You from Rent - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWSHal1Hk-E&ab_channel=cassiopeia
- If you haven't listened to this week's episode of the popcast in which Knox and Jamie preview the Bachelorette contestants, please do. It single handedly saved my Wednesday.
I look forward to reading about your weeks! When Lil Swipe Camp happens, I am there! :)
Good morning everyone!
This week was also a little blah for me as well. I'm moving next week and lots of things are happening this month that I'm starting to feel a little overwhelmed. I cried three times Tuesday over the internet connection in my new house...shout out to everyone like me who suppresses their emotions until they cannot suppress anymore and then literally start crying about how their AT&T Fiber is in the garage...oof. Thank goodness it's Friday. Anyone have any moving tips/tricks they would like to share?
Some treasures:
1. I'm sure there are a bunch of you who are Ben Rector fans...or Ingrid Michaelson fans...can we just talk about the acoustic version of "It Would Be You?" ft. Ingrid??? Ugh so beautiful. (Also, one of the co-writers on that song is Jordy Searcy and he's an awesome musician as well and I 10/10 recommend his music)
2. I know that Jamie gave Emily in Paris a red light this week...but y'all I love this show. Not because its good. I love it because it's like watching bubble gum and is basically "basic American girl living abroad" porn. I thought about minoring in French in college and after watching this show I regret it. Maybe after COVID settles I can just quit life and move to Paris?? I'm willing to be the Lil Swipe living in France if we need someone there ;)
3. Kamala Harris's side eye during the debate gave me life. What a great example of being equal amounts of respectful and stern in sticky situations. I'm horrible at having that balance (re: me yelling at my mom that "I will never effing care about Fox News" during a heated debate one time) so it was nice to have an example of how to smile through the turds ya know?
Happy Friday, everyone! My treasure was actually delivered to me in a round-about way this week... by a potential Covid exposure. I saw my brother outdoors for about an hour last Sunday. He had no symptoms and we both wore masks the entire time. He tested positive for Covid two days later on Tuesday. I am a Kindergarten teacher, so when I reported it to my school, I was told I had to quarantine for 14 days from the exposure. I have cycled through sadness (I am 20 weeks pregnant tomorrow and had to reschedule THE big anatomy ultrasound that was supposed to happen yesterday- which was the first appointment my husband would have been be able to attend due to Covid), anger (I have been SO careful and diligent about wearing masks, etc. and this one incident has sidelined me for two weeks), guilt (what about my Kinders? How are they doing without me there?), fear (what happens if I do get Covid at 20 weeks pregnant?) and finally arrived at acceptance. I am feeling fine with no symptoms, and hopefully will stay that way. I woke up this morning with a refreshed spirit and am going to try to make the most of this unexpected break in real life, which I probably really needed.
Here I am, writing from a coffee shop, trying not to snort over the grocery store musical number. And also trying not to sing "writing from a coffee shop" to the same tune.
I want to thank you all for your prayers and encouragement re: sleep. THE LORD HATH PROVIDED. My oldest has been sleeping through the night again, and the baby popped two teeth. So we sleepin' over here, y'all. Holding on to it while I can. 😅
Things I'm looking forward to right now:
⭐️Comfortable Together. Of course. ❤️
⭐️Penny & Sparrow's Live on the Internet show a week from today. My heart could explode I'm so freakin' excited. They're going to premier a new original song and just... so much goodness. Anybody else going to watch?!
⭐️Yes, The Bachelorette. Do we need more nonsense? Well, no. But do we need more Popcast content? Always. 😂
⭐️One of my favorite up & coming artists, Charli Adams, announced that she's going to release her first full-length album next year. I've been waiting for this for SO LONG. If you're into nostalgic feelings and reveling in what it means to be young, she's your girl. Her EP "Good At Being Young" is in my ears often: https://open.spotify.com/album/2kVUq4DbkaS6xA33CC6EmQ?si=43WtinMvQ9KZtiuaQ5to7w
⭐️Not to mention, my baby turns 1 in a matter of weeks, and I can hardly believe it. He's going to be an astronaut for Halloween, and his birthday is right before Halloween, so hello space-themed birthday party.
Love to you all, MEAN IT. So grateful for what we have here. Whenever Swipe Up Camp happens, I'm there. ❤️
Good morning, Lil Swipes!
Just last week I was just thinking, "man, I'd love to have a retreat with these people." LIL SWIPES CAMP NEEDS TO BE A THING. IN JESUS NAME.
My treasures this week are:
- making my own pizza like Bri McKoy. I bought a pizza stone and everything. It's legit.
- the Peloton app. Because I am not a rich white suburban mom (shout out to all y'all who are tho, keep doin' your thang) I cannot afford the actual Peloton bike, but because gyms are closed-ish and I feel some type of way about working out in a public space in a pandemic (a large room where EVERYONE is breathing heavy, even through masks, gives me the heebie jeebies), I NEED some kind of work out. My mental health and stress management has been off the walls since the pandemic started. I finally decided to explore my options and I found a cheaper spin bike on Facebook Marketplace, drove out to a Chicago suburb to pick it up, and the lady was like "yeah, we did the Peloton hack with this for a couple of months, but we became so obsessed with it that my husband was just like, 'Babe. We're getting the Peloton.'" And if that isn't a romance for the ages, I don't know what is.
So anyway, I now have this bike, a cadence sensor from Amazon, and the app on my iPad and I'm obsessed with Cody's workouts. If any of y'all are Peloton people, please post your usernames in the comments! I'd love to follow more people. Also, please let me know who your favorite instructors are.
- I finished a pretty good mystery novel this week. It's called "The Guest List" by Lucy Foley. If you're a fan of Tana French, this also takes place in Ireland, but I'd say it was a lot more fast-paced than the TF books I've read. I normally don't like books that switch points of views, but this one was actually not confusing to follow at all. Not only does it switch points of view, but it jumps around in points in time, which again: sounds like it would be confusing and frustrating, but I actually found it easy to follow and it added to the suspense of the book. So if you're looking for some escapism into a beautiful island off the coast of Ireland where people are dying, give this one a read.
Happy Friday Lil Swipes!
Yesterday morning I opened my gmail app excited to read Erin’s latest newsletter and it wasn’t there. What? I am on the West Coast so it’s always there waiting for me bright and early. I thought to myself, “That’s weird she wouldn’t leave us hanging this week of all weeks when we need some treasures.” I finally realized that it was only Thursday 🥴🤦🏻♀️. That's my week in a nutshell.
I want to thank Erin and the other peeps who shared yesterday about why they’re voting the way they are. It was so meaningful to hear their honest reflections. Thank you! Also I can’t wait for your latest review of the princess Christmas movie.
Treasures this week included getting up early for a long-ass hike up to Zanja Peak. Hiking has become a lifeline for me, especially this year. I am all about completing those stress cycles thanks to the fabulous book “Burnout” by the Nagoski sisters. Seriously, if you haven’t read it please do. It is such a wellspring of info to help combat *all this*.
When I’m stressed I often find comfort in consuming darker material. I don’t know why🤷🏻♀️-makes me thankful for my life I guess? “Hard but good” is one of my favorite genres. All that to say I really enjoyed the ESPN 30for30 podcast called Heavy Medals. It is a tight seven episode run that follows Bela and Marta Karolyi from Romania through their USA Gymnastics careers. All the top gymnasts were interviewed and it was a very eye-opening, sobering listen.
I also watched Emily in Paris. Was it a scintillating, deep character study with thoughtful dialogue? Hell no. But the clothes were fun, Paris as a backdrop was dreamy, and with our bare TV landscape it was a passable pallet cleanser from the news.
Looking forward to Monday and The Comfortable Words read through. I know I need it!
Just opened this email and need to go ahead and say all the YESSES to Swipe Up Camp. Packing my foot locker now
Good morning gang!
This has been a hard fought week. Everyone has had over flowing feelings ever where I look. My own house included, I’ve decided no less than one million times this week that I no longer want to be the mom and or in charge.
But y’all it doesn’t work that way, which sucks! My sister who is a barely functioning addict is getting on my nerves and my mom who is in the throws of grief over her sister is bugging me too. According to them I’m not grieving hard enough. I made a decision to ignore them for now.
My only treasures were a trip to Aldi and Target ( both of these stores are about 35 minutes away so it takes a big of planning) with my bff. Where I spent recklessly and bought a zillion pumpkins for $2.50 each. I have yet to figure out what to do with them all but something will!
The Great British Bake Off has been my hour of complete joy and peace for the past few weeks since it's been back. As it is for so many of us. I know the low-key and polite Britishness of the show calms us all. Then I realised I may be sitting on a goldmine of British shows that most lil' swipes don't know about yet and they could be calming your soul too. So I've written a list.
▪ Great British Sewing Bee
As it says on the tin. Like the bake off but with skirts instead of cakes. Same vibe, very non-competitive, happy to help each other, sewing competition.
▪ The Repair Shop
People bring in their beloved treasures that are worse for wear and a team of amazingly talented restorers bring them back to life. A huge variety of different objects every episode. The one constant, I always cry. Do you feel the need to cry about a jigsaw being repaired? Or maybe boxing gloves? This is your show.
▪ Countdown
A British treasure for nearly 40 years. It's basically just trying to make the longest word you can out of nine letters and the occasional maths game thrown in. Very sedate, but a British staple. So beloved they've actual made a post water-shed edition!
▪ QI
Stands for Quite Interesting. Is actually very interesting. The later seasons are hosted by Sandi Toksvig and Stephen Fry was the original host. Both are excellent. What I fall asleep to. Have an almost pavlovian response to the theme tune now.
▪ Taskmaster
Okay, so this one doesn't quite fit in with all the rest, but Noel Fielding is a contestant for series 4, it you're looking for more of him. It's a comedy game show and there is some adult language, but I enjoy it very much.
▪ Gogglebox
It is literally just people watching TV. I don't know why it's so good, but it is.
▪ Location, Location, Location
Just a property show, but with the beloved Kirstie and Phil.
▪ Grand Designs
Another property show, this time with only Phil. Shows unusual house builds from start to finish.
▪ Celebrity Bake Off
Did you know this was a thing? We have one-off episodes of bake off for charity where the four celebrities compete for just one day. You won't know who nearly any of the celebrities are, but does it matter? It's still more Bake Off. Tan from Queer Eye is in one episode.
My greatest treasures this week were the fly on Mike Pence’s head and finishing Ted Lasso. Y’all. Ted Lasso is the best show on tv right now (maybe ever) and will 100% cure what ails you with all *this* going on.
I have only treasures as my rose colored glasses are fixed firmly on my face during what is my first vacation since October 2019...(a moment of silence for 2019...) First of all, huge shout-out to Hannah Myer, yes, our Hannah Myer of the Lil Swipes community, for Best Snail Mail Pen Pal award. I went "dark" for a couple months and she checked in by email to see if I was ok 😭❤️. And she said she'd still be my friend even though I'm voting straight ticket R this year.
Other treasures: Reading Caste and engaging a 2 hour book book discussion with someone who doesn't agree with me politically. It was a gift to talk about these important things and come away still deeply respectful of each other.
And I discovered a beautiful historical fiction novel by the title Code Name: Helene that has been a delight to read on my vacation. (And now I sneak back to Jillian's Til Tok curation to watch them all).
Between allergies, a very hectic work week, and all the other things, my brain feels like mush. Let’s hope I can successfully make it through the work day. But anyways, here we go:
- Mindy Kaling secretly had another baby two months ago and just announced it last night 😳 Also her essay collection that released on amazon this week is fantastic!
- Challenger: the Final Flight on Netflix. As a lifelong NASA/space nerd, anything like this makes me emotional, both the tragic and triumphant. This is an important watch for anyone in a decision-making role in any capacity and a beautiful tribute to those lost as we hear from their loved ones
- I’ve been strictly isolating so that I can safely (and with peace of mind) see my grandparents this weekend for the first time in at least 10 months. I’m very excited!
- The delicate manner of this llama https://www.instagram.com/p/CFutarlpzcB/?igshid=1hruix8dlf5dd
Hi! Hello!
Bad Movie Club is coming back, I'm so excited! Also, Erin, you used the word "chortle" and I just learned an hour ago that it is Lewis Carroll's blend of 'chuckle' and 'snort', so I thought I'd share.
My mission this week was to get up earlier in the mornings. I FAILED. I have been ridiculously sleepy all week. Not only have I slept late every morning, I have also been taking 1,5-2 hour naps in the afternoon and nearly fallen asleep with my face in my dinner plate like a toddler. I blame October. 🤷♀️
I did find a few treasures when I managed to stay awake though.😉
Last weekend I made cinnamon rolls. They were delicious and I've been eating them every day.
On Tuesday I got a haircut and I'm loving it!
Dick Johnson is Dead on Netflix. It's either the best or the worst thing to watch a month after your father's Alzheimer's diagnosis but for me, I think it was the best and I will be watching it again to help me process everything. Gosh, I'm crying just thinking about it. 😭
For those of you who enjoyed Noel Fielding as cakes Twitter thread last week, here is the sequel starring Matt Lucas. https://twitter.com/Pandamoanimum/status/1313545100002287617
I love the GBBO Twitter account. https://twitter.com/BritishBakeOff/status/1314494561817890818
Ok, that's it for me this week. Can't wait to read your turds and treasures! ❤
Good Morning Swipes!!
Back to Florida being hot as balls. Need the humidity to back up! ☀️
🏈 FNL: wrapping up S2: Larrabee is downright rude! Glad Julie stepped up and confessed to Coach that Riggins didn’t do anything unjust. Took you long enough... why does Julie irritate me so? Jason disappears through episodes... where does he go?
☕️ Living for coffee meetings in the park with one of my friends every Friday morning. So nice to put my feet in the grass and share space with a human.
🛎 Sometimes people are only in your life for a short season and that’s ok. It’s ok to let them go, especially if you’re philosophically different from how you “Friend”.
📚The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai. This was a 5🌟snot alarm fictional account of the AIDS epidemic in Chicago in the 80s. Started 🏚👻Home Before Dark by Riley Sager and I’m already SUPER creeped out.
That’s all! Hope everyone has a Happy Friday! 🤓😜
Fellow Space Nerd here - Spot the ISS is so cool! We drag our boys outside whenever there is a good viewing to watch. Taught my Dad about it when we went to visit him at his land out in the country (he gets the BEST views!)
Treasures:
🎧 walking & listening to podcasts as a break from work. This has been amazing for my stress level, and gives my eyes a break from the screen. I shoot for 15 minutes, twice a day.
💇🏻♀️ getting my hair cut and colored today. Letting my color process and reading a book uninterrupted is seriously self care to me!
Also loved all of the #thisiswhy posts yesterday. Helped me put into words how I was feeling and inspired me to consider making a similar post.
Happy Friday, y’all!
Looks like plenty of good treasures to me! The Tiktok thread is exactly why I love it, and part 6 SENT me. And thank you, Erin, for being part of the group of sharing about your voting platform and important issues yesterday. Well worth the energy, and I hope you feel that way too.
This week was also a doozy for me 😐
💩 a coworker was let go this week and it’s doubled my workload (as well as the rest of my team’s to pick up the slack) so been trying to get my head above water at work. This has meant way more hours spent - praying this is just a season and for the perseverance to get the work done well.
🎶 made this spotify list this week for instant serotonin and motivation. Each song has a memory tied, and listening to it to power through the week has been the comforting familiarity and drive I’ve needed. Have at it, but be warned it is a little wild 😂 https://open.spotify.com/playlist/063Lfg322sVwc8lQDVwkUc?si=RpyFl5xoSmWroXQ0FB8LjA
🎧 Annie F. Down’s podcast ep with Maddie and Tae - what a freaking treasure. I’ve been a fan of Maddie and Tae for a few years, and I loved hearing this convo amongst friends 💕💕 https://www.anniefdowns.com/2020/10/09/episode-250-maddie-and-tae/
👥 My mom and I had a lovely chat this week, talking about some of the things I’ve been wrestling with faith-wise and her college aspirations to politics that I never knew about (a summer internship with the Dept of Education changed her mind 😂). It was good to talk through some of the disenchantment I have because many Christians in my circles growing up approach other people as debate opportunities, not as people worthy of love and care. That has really bothered me, and I’m looking for the right balance of care and “reputation” before we debate - how are we to be believed if we don’t have any actions backing it up?
💃🏼 and now for the main event 😂
After school activities - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJyorNXT/
Welcome to Potatok - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJyoBkXc/
Me furiously grocery shopping to replace the snacks I ate at my friend’s house after dogsitting - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfF6dkG
A moment of calm - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfF7QtF/
A recipe I’ll actually try - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfFgV2V/
The most wonderful watchalong I’ve seen - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJf5bKdJ/
This week’s WAP content - kid misunderstood lyrics - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfGrpo4/
Pick your favorite awkward HP publicity photo - it’s the deep ice skating lunge for me - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfGLT9B/
Someone help me because I cannot stop watching - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfGhW7w/
My kinda lady - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfGNYVq/
Here for this halloween series - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfEjU9A/
A Sound of Music bliss moment - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfELnnK/
Dad pun quota - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfESDx4/
YO IF THIS AIN’T THE WEATHER TRUTH - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfEU2HL/
Ouch, just at me next time for office culture - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfESXcL/
Rating mid-2000s hair products for nostalgia - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfEyWqT/
A British reminder for us all - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJfERBWK/
Love it friend. Your this is why post made me weep yesterday. Me and my 3 girlfriends shared it on our story. Whew. You’re a brave gal. Happy Friday folks!
I've debated about this comment many times, but ultimately landed on the fact that I wanted to participate in the conversations around this neighborhood, and doing so without saying anything about what is going on in my real life felt very disingenuous. I will try not to go on too long, but no promises. So, last week my daughter and I were in a car accident. I am physically fine (just a few bruises and sore muscles), but my daughter suffered a serious head trauma and was life flighted from the scene. She's stable and in ICU, and we are taking things one day at a time. Or at least, I am trying to. Some moments my brain starts spinning. I won't pretend this isn't the hardest thing I have ever done, because it is. But in this darkness, there is also light: 1. Our family and friends and community have SHOWN UP. In dozens of ways. And in a year where I have felt so lonely, this has been extra humbling and remarkable. 2. Living in Houston, she was able to go to one of the best pediatric neuro trauma hospitals in the country. 3. GBBS, The Popcast, audiobooks have been keeping me distracted during moments when I desperately need it. 4. The Comfortable Words. For such a time as this. I KNOW I need it. 5. That Twitter thread about the tree and the ISS was magical!
Ok. That was so long, but I will leave you with a shirt anecdote: a friend i used to work with told me one day about a sermon she heard once where the preacher kept using the phrase "peace and grace" and all she could think of was "peas and gravy." It became our funny-but-kind-of-serious send-off and benediction to each other. So, in that spirit: peas and gravy to everyone.
“Your people are out there, even in the dark.” 😭 If that isn’t a fantastic description of the Lil Swipes- I don’t know what is. I’d buy that T-shirt in a heartbeat.
Little Wild Women update. Littlest wild woman has moved on from the oven door ride to two new favs:
1. Stealing my dish towels and hanging them around her neck like she’s a middle age woman who just finished a major jazzercise workout.
2. When she gets really worked up about something, she likes to sit on top of a floor vent behind the couch. You need to put yourself in timeout in a small space with some air blowing on you? Be my guest! Actually a pretty great coping strategy, UNTIL one day when I hear a muffled whining noise. I peek behind the couch to see what’s happening and see... toes just barely sticking out. A smidge later- I see little fingers from underneath the front of the couch. She loves to climb the entire way under the couch, but the way she emerges definitely gives me some flashbacks to labor and delivery 😳😂
Littlest woman also has some BIG feelings and is not the greatest at sleeping (which tends to exacerbate said big feelings). I don’t consider myself to be a very “crunchy” person (on a scale of a flour tortilla to cinnamon twists fresh from the fryer, I’m probably like a cheesy gordita?) but after exhausting every get-your-kid-to-be-a-decent-sleeper tool that I have in my arsenal, I *whispers* bought essential oils. I am NOT a fan of MLMs and the weird voodoo cultish energy around this kind of thing, but I’m desperate to average more than 4-5 hours of sleep a night, so I’m willing to give it a go. I figure worst case scenario, my house just ends up smelling better? Thank you for listening to my confession.
Erin, your crest is lovely!!! I need to go back to IG to hear your break down of it. I designed a crest at age 15-16 that was so heavy with symbolism you could clobber someone with it. There were crowns, there was liturgical imagery, there was a full on depiction of my name in pictures (sarah Lindsey means “princess of the linden tree isle” so THERE.) and that tells you the kind of kid I was.
I loved the ISS / tree id’er story. That’s the kind of thing that would happen to my mom and she would be in wonder of the whole thing as well.
TREASURES 🏴☠️⚔️👑
- Im a lefty and the boy is a righty. He sent me this on Instagram Tuesday: “If you date a left handed person as a righty it means you can hold hands together while holdings swords in your dominant hands and fighting off mutual enemies ⚔️ 💛” 🎶so this is love hmmmhmmm so this looveeee🎶
- Related to that, we are nearing the time of year when I said, hmm I think I like that boy and he said hmmm I really should buy that motorcycle so I can get that girl. (Not because he thought the motorcycle would woo me, but because boy logic says if you have the motorcycle before the girl, the girl can’t tell you not to get a motorcycle. Reader. I helped him decide on his motorcycle. I didn’t care.) I’m not saying I’m a person who remembers every little date but I’m totally that girl. It makes me happy to pass road markers in my memory and see how far we’ve come.
- My grandparents are in the state for the first time since my sister got married last year, so I’m taking a weekend trip to Nashville to see them and the rest of my family. I’m excited. Also a little nervous cause it’s politicking season, and I’m the weird progressive/conservative of my fam but yeah.
- ENOLA HOLMES! I had a rough day Wednesday and my sweet friend in Charlotte, NC asked if I wanted to have a virtual movie night to cheer me up. We have sworn to raise our daughters to fight in dresses well, and our Victorian hearts were all a flutter with thats earnest handclasp at the end. What a delightful two hours spent.
— my only TikTok contribution is this delightful human who is making an Aravis from Horse and His Boy cosplay based on historical Turkish fashion. I am in AWE. https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJPYRULT/